Should I reduce pellets or Greens?

[Mimzy]

Hello! I just took my foster rabbit to an event the foster group was holding & my foster, Dax, got weighed. They want him to lose some weight so she seemed more adamant about reducing his veggies than his pellets but she did mention to cut back on pellets too.

Aren’t pellets more fattening than veggies? So what if I cut his pellets out & did just his usual veggies instead?

He actually has already been getting less food than what he was getting the last time he was weighed & yet he’s gained more. This boy is food crazy, but I try to keep his meals pretty limited especially treats…he gets a piece of banana like once in a blue moon.

[Bam]

Cutting back on pellets is WAY more effective than cutting out greens. Pellets are calorie-dense. It is possible for a bun to get overweight from greens if you give really huge amounts, but a normal daily salad wont make anybunny fat. You can avoid giving root greens (carrot, parsnip, rutabaga, root celery, beetroot etc), stick with the leafy greens. Cutting back on greens (if he get lots of greens) can still be favorable if it make the bun eat more hay. Hay is very good for rabbits. It wears down the teeth (rabbits teeth must be worn down continously) and it keeps the tummy in good order.

I’d not cut pellets out completely. Cutting out all pellets can lead to too rapid weight loss which can cause life-threatening liver problems (hepatic lipidosis – liver toxicity). You want your bun to lose weight slowly and steadily. How much pellets is he getting now? You could perhaps start giving half of that amount. Make sure he has hay and water 24/7. Try to observe him so you see that he actually eats the hay.

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